Historic campus building to house new student activity center

IN 1915, FRANK S. BARNES SR. OF ROCK HILL was his family’s first Clemson College graduate, and the Sheep Barn was built on campus. A $1 million gift to Clemson ensures that those two legacies will benefit students for years to come.

The Sheep Barn is the oldest surviving building associated with the agricultural land where the University now sits and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. No longer needed for its original purpose, the Sheep Barn will be renovated to serve as a vibrant social center for student engagement.

After graduation, Barnes went on to establish the Rock Hill Telephone Company. His son, Frank Jr., attended Clemson College and graduated in 1942. He devoted his career to the telephone company and became its president in 1968.

Frank Jr. also remained loyal to Clemson. A member of the board of visitors and foundation board, he was honored by the Alumni Association with its Distinguished Service Award and by the University with its President’s Award. In 1997, he was awarded the Clemson Medallion.

“Frank Barnes Jr. exemplified every excellent quality we hope Clemson graduates represent in their lives,” said President James Clements as he announced the gift from Barnes’ children. “We want to see the qualities that he displayed in his life — and passed along to all who knew him — showcased in this new venue to enrich the Clemson experience of our students for many generations to come.”

The gift from Barnes’ four children — Bryant Barnes, Frank “Sandy” Barnes III, Lea Barnes Taylor and Anne Barnes Grant — will transform a historic agricultural landmark into the Barnes Center, a space for student activity and engagement.

“Students want and need a welcoming, accessible and inclusive place to connect on campus in a positive Clemson environment,” said Gail DiSabatino, vice president for Student Affairs. “As a vibrant student hub on campus, we can meet these needs while preserving and honoring Clemson’s rich and honorable agricultural history through the restoration of this great venue.”

From concept development through daily operation, the Barnes Center will provide opportunities for student employment, leadership, graduate assistantships and internships, and experiential learning.

Four generations of Barnes family members have received Clemson diplomas. The Barnes family has established three endowment funds for Clemson’s College of Engineering and Science, creating fellowships, lectureships and the Frank Barnes Sr. Telecommunications Laboratory in the Fluor-Daniel Engineering and Innovation Building This gift is part of Clemson’s $1 billion Will to Lead campaign to support faculty and students and the engagement opportunities and facilities they need.

A Tiger’s lasting legacy

Suzanne Pickens

AS A STUDENT, SUZANNE PICKENS ’11 WAS AN ACTIVE PART OF CAMPUS. NOW AS AN alumna, she wants to give that same opportunity to students for generations to come.

To do so, Pickens has established an endowment within Student Affairs. After receiving a family gift, Pickens had the opportunity to donate to an organization of her choice. While many might have used the funds for personal use, Pickens chose Clemson as the beneficiary.

“I hope that these funds will help students have opportunities that they may not have thought were possible. I also hope that in turn, these students will continue to work hard to make Clemson a better place than they found it, because that was my goal.”

Pickens and her mother are very passionate about the University, which is why their decision to make a significant private gift to Clemson was one that was easy. Their hope is that the Pickens Family Endowment will inspire current students to reach their true Tiger potential.

In addition to the gift, Suzanne has committed to enhancing it over the next five years through the Clemson Family Endowment Program. Because endowment funds are continually invested and only a percentage of the earnings spent, the seed investment grows over the years, creating a perpetual gift that continues to sustain the University and students who benefit from the funds. Because the endowment provides unrestricted support, it allows the president and administrators to direct the resources to Clemson’s highest priority within that program area.

Currently, Suzanne puts her communication studies and business administration degree to good use at Chick-Fil-A corporate in Atlanta. She attributes her professional success to her Clemson professors and real-life experiences gained through leadership roles in campus organizations.

During her student days, Suzanne was an active member of Panhellenic Council, Tiger Brotherhood, Student Alumni Council, Order of Omega and Blue Key Honor Society, where she learned the true value of being a part of the Clemson Family. Today, she is thankful that Clemson encourages students to get involved on campus to become more well-rounded individuals.

And she is committed to helping that continue for the next generation of the Clemson Family.

To learn more about how you can establish a Clemson Family endowment, call 864-656-2121, email forever@clemson.edu or visit clemson.edu/giving.

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Friends and family honor Mayberry’s memory

At the Clemson-Boston College football game, friends and teammates of former Clemson football player Robert P. “Bob” Mayberry Jr. announced that $1 million and 74 dollars has been raised to establish an endowment to honor Mayberry’s memory and values. The endowment will award partial scholarships to football trainers and/or managers.

Mark Richardson ’83, a member of the committee that initiated the effort, said that the scholarship was a fitting tribute. “We are confident it would have been Bob’s dream to honor those who work hard day in and day out with no expectation of recognition beyond that which accrues to the whole team.” The fundraising committee also includes Jubal Early, Steve Horvath, Steve Luquire, Robert P. Mayberry Sr. and Kendall Alley ’83, M ’85.

Mayberry started on the 1981 National Championship team. Following graduation in 1983, he joined his father in the automobile business, married and raised a family, and seized every opportunity to demonstrate his passions for Clemson and for helping others. He died in 2012 after a battle with cancer.

Pledges and gifts in support of the Robert P. “Bob” Mayberry Jr. ’83 Endowed Memorial Grant-in-Aid may be addressed to the Clemson University Foundation and mailed to Connie Sexton, IPTAY Major Gifts, P.O. Box 1529, Clemson, S.C. 29633.

Barker Scholars update

More than $2.8 million has been donated to the Barker Scholars Endowment, established to honor President Barker and his wife, Marcia. The endowment will support need-based scholarships for undergraduates. More than 2,000 contributed to the fund, with more than 80 founding partners who contributed more than $25,000 each.

Donations may still be made online, by check or by gifts of appreciated stock. Make checks payable to Clemson Fund, P.O. Box 1889, Clemson, S.C. 29633, and indicate “Barker Scholars.”

Fort Hill Club looks to the long term

Since 2006, the Fort Hill Clemson Club has funded annual scholarships for students through the money raised from their annual Recruiting Wrap Up. But this year, they decided a change was in order.

The event has more than tripled in attendance to 700 and increased more than 1,000 percent in sponsorships to $21,000. Held the day after recruiting ends, it includes chats with the coaches and players, barbecue and getting the inside scoop on the season to come.

Jerry Handegan and Eric Breazel

This year, club leadership took a look at their profits and their goals. “There were always two schools of thought,” says former club president Jerry Handegan. “Do we give immediate money now, or do we create an endowment? People wanted to do scholarships. So we just gave our $10,000 annually for that.”

According to Eric Breazel, also a past president of the club, “As the event got more and more successful, we began to ask the question, ‘Should we think more long term?’ What pushed us over the edge was a chat with the financial aid and admissions staff, and hearing their perspective on the benefits of endowment — being able to attract students and offer them four-year scholarships. It was a no brainer.”

The club is actually doing both for now, giving an annual scholarship until the endowment reaches a high enough level to support more scholarships. The club invites scholarship recipients to the event each year, and according to Breazel, that makes the day even more special. “Obviously, folks come to see Dabo and the recruits. But while we’re welcoming new student-athletes we’re also celebrating new academic scholarships as well.”

And their message to other groups? “I would strongly like to encourage other groups or individuals to take a second or third look at making a gift that will make an impact for generations to come, not just for one year,” says Breazel. “Clemson’s still young and has centuries to go. An endowment can make a significant difference.”

To learn more about how you can make an impact on the future of Clemson, visit clemson.edu/giving, call 864-656-5896 or email cufund-L@clemson.edu.

Wells Fargo supports Call Me MISTER®, Emerging Scholars

Call Me MISTER and Emerging Scholars have in common their goal of improving educational opportunities for underrepresented populations. They also have in common the support of Wells Fargo, which donated $500,000 last fall to support the programs. Call Me MISTER seeks to place more African-American males in elementary school classrooms as teachers. Emerging Scholars’ mission is to increase the number of college graduates from economically disadvantaged areas and first-generation families. Since 2006, Wells Fargo has given $1.71 million to support the two programs.

Butch and Joy Ferree

Ferrees create trust for scholarships, experiential learning

Maurice “Butch” Ferree ’65, M ’67 and his wife, Joy, have created a charitable remainder trust valued at more than $1 million to benefit students in the College of Agriculture, Forestry and Life Sciences.

Half of the money will establish the Dr. Maurice E. “Butch” Ferree and Joy Culver Ferree Scholarship Endowment to provide scholarships for students in the college. The other half will create an endowment to provide experiential learning opportunities for students.

“We just both love Clemson,” said Butch. “I don’t have anything but good memories of being a student here. Looking back, most of my professors were tough as nails, but they loved their students. They were making men out of boys — that stuck with me. That experience was so valuable for me.”

“Clemson is a place I have loved all my life,” said Joy. “We want to see it continue to grow, and we wanted to help deserving students complete their education here.”

New leaves honor great generosity

The grounds of Fort Hill are home to three new bronze oak leaves sporting the signatures
of the new members of the Fort Hill Legacy Society, whose bequests or testamentary trusts were realized at $1 million or more.

Ethelyn Berry Smith dedicated her life to education. She taught several years in Kershaw County, and continued her devotion to education by establishing the Harry Graves Berry Bioengineering Endowment to honor her brother, a member of the Class of ’41.

Tragedy struck Ernest and Virginia Carroll when their only son, Ernest Jr., was killed in action in June 1944 during the invasion of Normandy, while Ernest Sr. was serving in the Pacific theater. The Carrolls created the Ernest Hill Carroll Jr. Endowed Scholarship Fund at Clemson, where he had attended before enlisting in the Army.

Porter H. and Sara L. Adams have long been tied to Clemson. Porter graduated in 1940, and their son Porter Jr. graduated in 1964. After 26 years of service in the U.S. Air Force, Porter Sr. taught both high school and college, then established the Porter Adams Family Endowed Unrestricted Scholarship.

As part of the inaugural Week of Gratitude held on campus in October, the Student Alumni Council presented a $75,000 check to benefit the Student Alumni Council Scholarship Endowment Fund and the Student Memorial Chapel.

On November 16, the University honored those who have become members of the Cumulative Giving and Legacy Societies through their faithful support of the University over the years. Scott Pelley, Clemson parent and anchor and managing editor of “The CBS Evening News,” was featured speaker at the event.

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July 20 marked the celebration of the University’s reaching — and exceeding — the Will to Lead capital campaign goal. But $608,839,594 marks just the beginning as the University is determined to reach a goal of $1 billion to meet the needs for students, faculty and facilities.

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Mickey Harder, director of the Brooks Center for the Performing Arts since 1996, was surprised at the season-opening concert as Friends of the Brooks Center and other donors gave $136,680 to name the main stage in her honor. The announcement was made at the Brooks Center’s season-opening show with Kennedy Center Honors recipient Barbara Cook.

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In May, 200 brothers and guests of the Numeral Society, the 1956 – 1970 “local” Greek fraternity that later became SAE on the Clemson campus, came together for an alumni reunion at Lake Murray near Columbia.

Out of that reunion came a pledge to raise additional funds to add to the endowment that supports the Joe Young Penthouse, named for the now-deceased longest continuous resident of the Clemson House. A longtime architecture professor, Young served 50-plus years as chapter adviser to first the Numeral Society and then SAE.

The Reunion Committee (Sterling Beckman ’64, Cal McMeekin ’65, Mike Maxwell ’67, Wayne Bell ’68, Jim Engram ’68, Edgar McGee ’68, Randy Bell ’69 and Bill Myers ’72) presented a check for more than $6,000 to President Barker on September 7 in a ceremony at the Joe Young Penthouse.

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Jim and Barbara McCabe of Clemson have honored a longtime friend with a $100,000 endowment to the Clemson Alumni Association. The Ann Harvin Hunter Leadership Endowment honors Alumni Association President Ann Harvin Whetstone Hunter (center) of Greenwood and will support leadership development for student and alumni volunteers.

Jim McCabe and Hunter’s father, Jack Moorer Whetstone, were friends from fourth grade until Whetstone’s death in 1959. Little did Jim know that he would later become friends with Whetstone’s daughter.

“He was my best friend all the way through school,” said Jim. “He died when Ann was a baby. After she was grown, we became acquainted. She has since called us her ‘surrogate parents.’”

A 1980 and ’82 chemical engineering graduate, Hunter was named the Volunteer of the Year in 2009. She has served on the Women’s Alumni Council and the Clemson Athletic Council and has been an IPTAY representative for 14 years.

Jim McCabe entered Clemson in 1943, but left to serve in the Navy during World War II. Retired from Exxon Company U.S.A., he has been married to Barbara for 63 years.

As your student becomes part of Clemson, so do you. Honor your student or young alumnus and help other families begin their own experience in the Clemson Family through the Clemson Family Endowment program.

Create a named unrestricted endowment in honor of your current student or young alumnus with a minimum gift of $10,000, payable over three years. If your employer participates in corporate matching funds, those dollars can help reach the initial amount. For more details, email cufund-L@clemson.edu or call 864-656-5896.

A $1.5 million gift from Goz Segars ’66 of Hartsville, along with his wife, Pat, and their family, will support scholarships, fellowships and student engagement programs in Clemson’s College of Agriculture, Forestry and Life Sciences.

“I feel very strongly about the future of agriculture in our country,” said Segars, “and I would like to help students have very broad, real-world experiences so they will have a better understanding of all facets of agriculture.”

Part of the gift will establish the Goz and Pat Segars Annual Student Assistance Fund, which will provide need-based assistance to undergraduate and graduate students in agriculture-related majors. The gift also will benefit student engagement opportunities in the college, specifically experiential learning programs for students at the Segars’ cattle ranch in Montana and their farm in Hartsville. Students, with faculty mentors, will spend time at the ranch or the farm studying animal science, pre-veterinary medicine, crop production, irrigation management, wildlife biology and environmental studies.

Segars is chair of the Clemson University Foundation Board and has been a member of it since 2006. Also a director of the Clemson University Real Estate Foundation, Segars is a founding director of Clemson’s Land Stewardship Foundation. He received Clemson’s 2011 Institutional Advancement Award and the 2012 Distinguished Service Award from the Clemson Alumni Association. He also served on the University’s Board of Visitors.